Label-Reading Can Bring All Kinds of Tasty Surprises!

Do you ever read food packaging? I do. It's one of my little idiosyncrasies. I love seeing where things are made, what's in a product, and if there's a recipe or two included with the product. I was studying a recently emptied bottle of salt free Deliciously Dill Blend (one of my favorite ingredients to cook with) and found the manufacturer's website on the label. This company, Spice Hunter (located in San Luis Obispo, CA), is considered one of the best herb and spice providers around, so I was curious to see what their website offered--especially wondering if they offered recipes.

What a find--loads and loads of recipes! The company's spices and herbs are showcased in them, which is expected, and a really nice touch actually. For instance, look at the recipes below--who would have thought to include rosemary in a cookie or a muffin? I can hardly wait to see what this does to the overall flavor, and I will be trying these recipes this weekend. I'll be sure to report in. I'll also be talking more about label-reading and the tasty surprises we can find on them, in our upcoming Cook'n Club Newsletter, so be sure to open it up and read when it arrives.

Meanwhile, do YOU have any recipes you've found on a package label or product website? Tell us about them. We're all in this together, so let's share the good stuff. And until next time, happy cook'n!

ROSEMARY NUT COOKIES

1 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. The Spice Hunter Fresh at Hand Rosemary
2 eggs
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup flour
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt, optional
1 cup golden raisins
1 cup chopped pecans
2 Tbsp. grated orange peel

Pre-heat oven to 350°F. Beat eggs, then add sugar. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl. Add flour mixture gradually to egg mixture. Stir in raisins, pecans, rosemary, and orange peel. Pour into greased 9” pan and bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool and cut into bars.

ROSEMARY AND LEMON MUFFINS

1 cup milk
1 Tbsp. The Spice Hunter Fresh at Hand Rosemary
2 tsp. lemon zest
2 cups all purpose flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
2 eggs
½ cups melted butter
2 Tbsp. sugar

Combine milk, Fresh at Hand Rosemary, and lemon zest in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer, cook and stir over low heat for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, cool slightly. In a bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt. In a second bowl, whisk the eggs until they begin to foam. Stir in butter, sugar, and milk mixture. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix to combine. Fill muffin tins about two-thirds full. Bake at 375 °F for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean.

POPPY SEED & LEMON SHORTBREAD COOKIES WITH LEMON GLAZE

For Shortbread:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 Tbsp. The Spice Hunter Pure Lemon Extract
½ cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp. The Spice Hunter Dutch Poppy Seeds
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

For Glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 tsp. The Spice Hunter Pure Lemon Extract
2 1/4 tsp. water

Cream butter, lemon extract and powdered sugar together in a medium bowl. Add poppy seeds and flour, stirring to combine. Place dough between two sheets of plastic wrap and roll dough into a 9 by 13 inch rectangle. Place plastic wrap and dough onto a baking sheet and place in freezer until dough is firm. While dough is chilling, preheat oven to 325°F. Remove plastic wrap from dough, cut dough into 1 by 2 inch pieces, place on an un-greased baking sheet. Prick each cookie lightly with a fork twice. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until light golden-brown on edges. While cookies are cooling, combine glaze ingredients in a small bowl. Once cookies have cooled, drizzle with glaze.